


A Confession From A Gorgeous Giraffe

by brunettebrawler56



Category: The Good Place (TV)
Genre: Australia, Cotton Candy Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Season 3, first confession of love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-29
Updated: 2020-01-29
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:01:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22441495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brunettebrawler56/pseuds/brunettebrawler56
Summary: Fluff city over the first time that the roommates realize they're in love in Australia.
Relationships: Tahani Al-Jamil/Eleanor Shellstrop
Comments: 1
Kudos: 91





	A Confession From A Gorgeous Giraffe

Tahani was the pinnacle of tact and savoir faire. She once managed to host a successful dinner party where her recently divorced good friends Brad and Jennifer managed to discuss dividing up their furniture while sharing a strawberry napoleon at the table. Mrs. Manners literally wrote her once to ask for her advice. And yet. Here she was in front of Chidi’s door, knocking hesitantly.

“Come in,” said a familiar voice.

She opened to find Chidi organizing a stack of papers on his desk, a smile at the sight of her. Then he cocked his head like a slightly confused dog. “Tahani! I didn’t think your testing was until later today.”

She swept in with a guilty look, “I’m sorry to interrupt. I understand how important your time is. But I was hoping to, er, pick your brain.” 

“I think that’s more Simone’s department,” he said, laughing a little at his own joke.

Of course he would try to bring a neuroscientist into this. She held out a steel thermos, “Here. I brought you coffee.”

“Thank you.” He took a sip and gave a pleasant noise. “This is… fantastic.”

“The Arabian beans are flown in fresh during season. Oh! And there’s a dash of organic almond milk of course,” she added.

Chidi set the thermos down and focused on her then. He’d seen Tahani in a lot of moods, but uncomfortable was rarely one of them. She fidgeted with her currant colored nails. And one was even chipped. Something was definitely wrong. “What can I help you with?”

“It’s Eleanor. Have you noticed anything… off? Different?”

Chidi steepled his fingers together and thought hard. The past few lessons they’d had, Eleanor had been distracted. He could tell by the way she didn’t butt in when he mentioned “knowing ones’ self”, which she consistently argued was a metaphor for masturbation.

Tahani bit her lower lip, hesitating, then confessed, “Ever since she moved into one of my eight guestrooms, she’s come out each evening for dinner and the occasional television show. I enjoyed the company and I thought she had to. But then, she began favoring microwave meals and the television in her room. At first, I thought she simply didn’t like watching Diedre and Margaret or my more, er, refined palette dishes such as caviar crusted tuna or uni risotto. So I began airing episodes of the Real Housewives of Buffalo in the main room and eating these American travesties—Hot Pockets, in hopes she’d join me in the evenings. But she’s done nothing of the sort! She refuses to spend time with me. And I’ve been trying so hard that in the process, I’ve gained two kilograms! TWO BLOODY KILOGRAMS, CHIDI! I AM A PERFECT HOUR GLASS THAT HAS NOW TURNED INTO A PEAR!” A dark flush crept up her russet chest and cheeks by the end of her rant.

Chidi consoled, “You’re a good friend, Tahani. You took her in when she couldn’t afford her rent to stay here in Australia in the study. I’m sure she’s grateful. But maybe she’s worried that she isn’t giving you enough space. With all the lessons we’ve been over, especially with being attune to one another’s needs, she may be trying to respond to yours. You’ve always lived alone, correct?”

“I’ve had a few boyfriends spend some weeks, but none without other residences.”

Chidi offered, “Then maybe she’s projecting how she would feel in your shoes. From what I know, she’d moved in with a few lovers before and it’s never worked out. Maybe it scares her to be in a place totally dependent on someone else that she can’t abandon when her instinct to emotionally detach strikes. Maybe she’s afraid you’ll ask her to leave.”

The thought that Eleanor was simply waiting for her to get tired of her sent Tahani making a quick but polite exit from Chidi’s office. He’d thanked her a few more times for the coffee, but she really had to be going. There was something she needed to do—if she had the courage to do it. She thought on the way from academia to her humble mansion how to phrase what she needed to say, but the words started clogging in her throat somewhere between there and home. The fact was, Tahani was in love with the little blonde. It had started the moment they met. Tahani tried to hide her growing feelings; pretending they were just good friends. But there was such softness under Eleanor's exterior. She'd been through so much but was still standing. She encouraged Tahani to become a better person, without judging her or comparing her to anyone.

Once Tahani made it to the mansion, she called from the marble foyer, “Eleanor!”

There was nothing. She checked the dining room, the living room, the kitchen, and the pantry. Not a sign. Then she heard a sound upstairs. She ascended the marble staircase, then knocked on the guest room's door. “Hello?”  
“Come in!”

Eleanor looked up from reading a trashy romance novel, Snickers wrappers littered around her. “Hey, what’s up?”

“We are moving, Eleanor Shellstrop.”

She sat all the way up and curled her feet under her, a hurt pink tinging her cheeks. Her voice didn't hide her disappointment. “Right. I figured you'd want your space back. I’ll be out by tomorrow morning if that’s okay.”

“No, darling. WE are moving. Both of us.”

Eleanor cocked her head. “Why? You love this place. The hotter Property Brothers built it just for you.”

“But he didn’t build it for you,” she said, sitting on the edge of the bed. “This place—though perfectly furnished—is just a place. It’s all too… big. It’s too much me and not enough you.”

Eleanor scoffed, “But I’m just your roommate. What happens when I leave?”

There was a long pause. “Just don’t leave.”

“What? And be roommates like Diedre and Margaret until we’re in our forking eighties?”

Tahani clutched her hands together, forcing herself to face Eleanor. This was the moment. It was time to rip off the Band-Aid. She’d known for a long time. “I was thinking we’d live together more like Ellen and Portia de Rossi.”

Eleanor’s brows shot up in surprise. “Oh, shirt. That’s…”

“Oh no.” She got off the bed. “I’ve mucked it all up.”

“Hold your horses! I’m just… surprised!”

“Why?”

“Because you’re a posh goddess and I’m an Arizona trash bag. I thought you were just being kind.”

Tahani put a hand on her hip. “Do you truly think I would allow the Jerry Springer show to be aired in a home I lived in if it weren’t love? Eleanor, I know exactly who you are. And not in spite of that, but because that, I love you. I would live in a hovel in Jacksonville if it meant I could be there with you.”

Eleanor stood up on the bed and walked over. Taller, she set her hands on Tahani’s shoulders. “We’re not moving, you gorgeous Everest. We’re staying right where we are: together.”

She bent down and laid a long kiss on Tahani’s plush lips. Finally, they were both truly home.


End file.
